


Adapting

by The_Author106



Series: Rescue Prime AU [10]
Category: Transformers - All Media Types, Transformers: Prime, Transformers: Rescue Bots
Genre: Autobots - Freeform, Decepticons - Freeform, M/M, Predacons, rescue bots
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-18
Updated: 2021-02-02
Packaged: 2021-03-05 09:49:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 20,762
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25348750
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Author106/pseuds/The_Author106
Summary: The last we saw of Team Prime, they were now residing in Griffin Rock as they recovered from what transpired in Jasper Nevada. Now living with the Rescue Bots they must keep their cover as robots in disguise in a more peaceful environment then they are used to. Which turns out to be much harder than anyone has expected on Team Prime.
Relationships: Blades/Bumblebee, Boulder/Predaking
Series: Rescue Prime AU [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/955200
Comments: 34
Kudos: 89





	1. Life on the Island

**Author's Note:**

> So I'm the new co-writer for this series and mostly Burntuakrisp has been referring to me as Moviegirl16 which is my Wattpad name. So I hope you guys enjoy this chapter and don't forget to leave a comment and some kudos.

The last time we saw Team Prime, the Decepticons had found their base and destroyed what they managed to call home ever since arriving to earth so many years ago. Resorting to separate for the time being until they all meet again in one location the Prime had managed to hide from his own team for quite some time. Now having found sanctuary for the time being at Griffin Rock, they now face their days having to live in a part of earth where the war hasn’t reached them yet. Though the incident that happened with the Vehicons were only known to Optimus and the Rescue Bots, each of them had their own way of coping with what happened. The humans had their ways but it still troubled them from time to time when the memory resurfaces. William Fowler and the others managed to fit in well with Griffin Rock’s society as the kids were slowly adapting back in school and somewhat normal life. 

Currently, adapting to a calm environment was difficult for Team Prime to handle, Arcee often went on patrol and realized thirty minutes in that there was no threat on the island. Ultra Magnus was reading the entire library the humans have on law enforcement when he would suddenly tense and prepare for an attack that would never come. Ratchet tinkered away to make a suitable medbay for the rescue bots as he refused to recharge as nightmares still plagued him from what transpired at Jasper. Wheeljack was in his ship, anxious when the next battle was going to happen as he readied his weapons as Bulkhead spent his time with his little brother, Boulder, as the anxiety of being separated from him was taking a great toll on his mental state. Optimus wasn’t fairing well as he was constantly monitoring for any deception activity in the Monitor room. 

From what happened, no one has relaxed since their arrival to Griffin Rock, The bots were on edge but they would never ruin an opportunity that the humans could live peacefully even if it was just for a short while. At their charge’s home, three familiar humans were already walking to the front door when one of them barged in. “I got a B!” Miko cheered when walking into their ‘home’ 

“That’s great Miko” Fowler said before frowning when seeing the broken door...again “And we talked about the door” he sighed as Miko sheepishly laughed as went upstairs to her room to put her school bag away

“So where’s my mom?” Jack asked as he made his over to the couch and plopped himself down to rest his aching feet

“Still at work, she’s probably held up from her shift” Fowler explained as he turned on the tv before taking a look at Jack and noticed his disheveled appearance “What happened to you?” 

“Someone added to my file that I used to play Baseball, the school put me on tryouts...I’m one of the batters for the school’s team” Jack said tiredly as Fowler blinked in astonishment 

“You can actually play? Fowler said incredulously as Jack glared at him 

“No! I was surprised as you were” Jack snapped as he stood abruptly and went upstairs to take a much-needed shower

Fowler sat in the living room alone trying to figure out what just happened before Raf broke the silence. “Uh...what’s for lunch?” 

Fowler looked at him and sighed as he stood to make lunch for the kids, hopefully, their kitchen appliances won’t attack them again when the electricity went haywire. While he made lunch, Miko was doing her geometry homework while listening to some rock music when her phone began to ring, not tearing her gaze from her math book. She grabbed her phone from the far side of her desk and answered, not even bothering to look at the caller ID. 

“Hello?” Miko said as she began solving the math problem she was currently on but stopped when hearing the sudden silence from her phone. “Hello?” she asked again as she leaned back in her chair “If this is some type of prank, this isn’t very funny,” Miko said angrily before hanging up. Glaring at her phone she put it on silent then threw it on her bed before turning back to her homework and ignored it for the next hour. 

Unknown to everyone in the house, a certain raven-haired pompous woman was in the back of her car watching the house from a considerable distance as to not cause any suspicion. She sat inside as she gripped her phone tightly as she stared at the bright blue house two streets away from the car, then asking her driver to drive them back to her company. As the people of Griffin Rock enjoyed the peace that will probably last for an hour or two, a more sinister force was planning their next move back in Jasper Nevada. Sitting on his throne was a familiar warlord as he plotted his next plan now that he has taken control of Jasper, Nevada, and managed to destroy the autobot base.

“My Lord” a baritone voice said as he walked into the throne room 

“Shockwave, any progress on the other Predacon clones?” the warlord asked as he watched the one optic mech stop a few feet away from him 

“The clones are successfully developing as I calculated. It won’t be long until they are under your command, Lord Megatron” Shockwave informed 

“Good...any sign of the autobots?” Megatron asked as he stood from his throne and made his way to the balcony to look at his growing empire on earth

“There hasn’t been any sign of the autobots since their base has been destroyed in the last deca-cycle” Shockwave reported as Megatron frowned 

“Don’t lower your guard Shockwave, If I know Prime, there will be no doubt that the Autobots will be planning an attack” Megatron stated as he stared at the horizon 

“Shall I have Predaking search from outside the perimeters of Nevada my lord?” Shockwave asked as Megatron thought on the idea before grinning sadistically 

“He should recognize the scent of that wrecker, Wheeljack, and if he manages to offline him then it leaves one autobot out of the equation” Megatron replied as he turned to face his scientist “Give the predacon his new orders and then continue working on finding a way to cyberform this putrid planet” 

“Of course Lord Megatron” Shockwave replied as he left the throne room to give his creation his new assignment 

From the deepest parts of DarkMount, a large predacon was watching the developing forms of his new brethren. When the drones managed to find more Predacon CNA he was beyond pleased at the find more so than Megatron and Shockwave alike. He didn’t even twitch when hearing the familiar footsteps of his creator come into the Lab, not bothering to turn and face him, he waited until the other spoke first which didn’t take long as Shockwave wasn’t one for pleasantries. 

“Lord Megatron has given you a new assignment. You shall head out of the perimeters of Nevada and locate the autobots and eradicate them” Shockwave informed as Predaking frowned but said nothing until the sudden movement of one his brethren caught his attention

He stood back when both containers broke and the liquid helping their developing forms were now on the cold metal floor as two predacons groaned. Predaking was quick to help the two off the floor as they clung to him to keep their footing. Shockwave watched and if he had any emotions he would’ve been shocked at the sudden scene before him. 

“I will take my brethren with me. We shall head out during the lunar cycle and locate where the autobots are residing” Predaking informed before pausing and turning his attention back to the two predacons in his grasp. “You will be named Darksteel” he said to the blue predacon before turning to the white/grey predacon “You will be Skylynx” 

The two looked at him before nodding before looking at him quizzically. “And who are you?” Darksteel asked as Skylynx murmured in agreement as Predaking looked at them 

“I am Predaking, your leader”


	2. New Problems

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter brought to you by The_Author106

From cityscapes to the countryside, the people below were blissfully unaware of everything around them as they enjoyed the normality in their lives. Unknown to them three beings flew high above them as they watched the bustling activity below them. Two of them watched in fascination as they saw the organics do their routines. 

“It’s fascinating how the organics can come up with all this” 

“Don’t get distracted Skylynx, our mission is to search for these autobots” 

“I’m not distracted, I’m searching and sightseeing at the same time” Skylynx said as he stuck his glossa at the other 

“Very mature” the other grumbled 

All the while their leader watched in amusement, flying with his brethren was one of the things he never thought could happen but here he is with his kind flying over the land below them. Though he wished it was under circumstances without the war and any autobots or decepticons involved, though the circumstances are not pleasant, he is grateful to Shockwave for bringing back the predacon race. 

“Enough Darksteel, bickering will no be of use at the moment Skylynx I know you mean well but we must focus on the objective we can sightsee later” 

“Fine…” Skylynx said before turning to his leader “Predaking, what’s an autobot? Exactly” he asked as Predaking paused in midair as the others stopped and turned to at their King questionably 

Predaking didn’t have a clear answer for them as the sudden question threw him off, his experience with the autobots was because he was ordered to fight against them. Then the incident that happened in Shockwave’s old lab destroyed what could have been a new age for the predacon race. “Truth be told, I have no clear answer. I was brought into this world the same as you two. My experience of battle with the autobots will not answer your question” 

“Then shall we study these autobots before we kill them?” Darksteel asked not liking what Predaking told them about his lack of knowledge on the autobots

“If you wish it. But do not report this to Megatron. He will be displeased if he finds out” Predaking informed with a flap of his wings as he continued their search for any autobot activity

The other two Predacons looked at each other before following their King once more as they searched for the autobots as the humans below lay unaware of their presence. Miles away from the Predacons, across the waters of Maine, the citizens of Griffin Rock were all gathered at the town square to hear the mayor’s speech about the new piece of tech coming to Griffin Rock. Murmurs of excitement were spread around as the Burns family stayed near the stage where the mayor was giving his speech. Kade had his arms crossed with his usual scowl on his face as boredom was clearly getting the best of him.

“Does the mayor have to give a speech each time there’s something new happening here on Griffin Rock?” Kade asked as his dad scowled at him but gave a sigh either way in agreement 

“The mayor likes to...announce the new age to Griffin Rock, even when it comes to new tech” Chief Burns said as he sighed as the mayor continued his speech “But I do understand what you mean son” 

“So what do you think the mayor has in mind this time?” Graham asked as a certain green bulldozer hummed in response causing a few people to turn their way as Graham began to hum so no one would suspect anything else

The bots were tense but gave a sigh of relief as their cover was safely intact as the human's attention was drawn back to the mayor speaking. “That was close” Chief Burns said as he looked over at Boulder 

“At least it wasn’t like last time” Danny said causing everyone to shudder at the memory as they could still remember the incident as if it was yesterday 

“Now without further adieu. I now present Vigil!” Mayor Luskey said as he pulled the tarp off the new piece of technology 

“Hello, I am Vigil. Your safety is my priority” it said as the crowd was in awe at the new computer 

As everyone admired the new piece of technology, Heatwave had to suppress a groan as nothing good ever lasts with ‘a good piece of technology’ for the last couple of rescues proved that not all gadgets or gizmos are a good idea. Though his team watched in wonder at the new addition to Griffin Rock’s security and safety.

‘Why do I get the feeling this isn’t going to end well’ Heatwave thought with a frown

As the crowd began to disperse, the bots were tasked with taking vigil to the laboratory to replace the old computer that was kept there. The trip was supposed to be a breeze according to Kade but what they didn’t expect was for Vigil to have an attraction to one of the bots. 

“Hello, I am Vigil, who may you be?” Vigil asked as a certain police bot struggled not to look surprised and embarrassed at the same time 

“Uh...Chief Burns?” Luskey asked as he pointed at the computer and at Chase 

“Well you did say Vigil is very intelligent, Mayor” Chief Burns responded as he fought the urge to laugh as Vigil kept complimenting him and asking for his name 

“We can’t have Vigil get distracted, you will go ahead and make sure no one has any ideas about stealing Vigil” Mayor Luskey said as he left the team to escort Vigil to the lab

As they all watched him, Kade was the first to break out into fits of laughter as he held his sides while the others stared blankly or glared at him. Though Chase was glaring at him while Vigil kept asking for his name though when hearing a few of his fellow rescue bots snicker he turned his glare at them. 

“That’s enough Kade, we need to get Vigil to the lab, Doc left earlier to set up everything” Chief burns sternly said as his son calmed his laughing fit

“No prob dad, I’m good now” Kade said as a few laughs escaped him 

Heatwave groaned as he felt a processor ache as he had to deal with Kade’s childish behavior and Chase’s new suitor. They hooked Vigil to Blade’s hook and set off for Doc’s lab, it was a few minutes later of Vigil’s constant request for Chase’s name did the bot finally blow his cover when he told him during their trip up to the lab. If Vigil knew he was annoying he would’ve stopped a long time ago but now the team had to deal with Vigil’s constant questions on Chase’s favorite pastime, hobbies, likes, and dislikes. When they arrived, Doc was outside waiting for them but when hearing Vigil asking so many questions about Chase did he give a quizzical look to Burns' family. 

“Don’t ask” Danny said as she could see Chase’s rising temper

Doc seeing the tense mood coming from Chase he had Vigil be taken into the lab by Heatwave and Boulder as the rest of the team stayed outside. It was a quick setup and Chase didn’t need to be told twice when he transformed and opened the door for Chief Burns to get in and head back to the firehouse. The others followed suit as they drove home in silence as they felt Chase’s mood throughout the drive home. When they arrived and went below the firehouse after the Burns family went to get ready for dinner, did they see Team Prime getting ready to leave. Noticing their arrival, Optimus was about to inform them of the situation when Cody came down with a Bouquet of flowers in hand as he walked to the bots. 

“Hey guys, what's going on?" Cody asked as he noticed Arcee, Bulkhead, and Ultra Magnus getting ready to leave 

"We are heading out to investigate a sudden energon spike. We'll be back in a couple of solar cycles" Ultra Magnus informed as Cody nodded before turning to Chase with the bouquet in hand

"These are for you Chase...I guess you really made an impression" Cody teased as Chase narrowed his optics and huffed before walking away to his quarters

Team prime stared at the scene in confusion before Optimus turned to heatwave for an explanation. "The mayor brought in a new piece of tech, says it'll help keep the town safe but it had a sudden attraction to Chase. By the allspark was he annoying" Heatwave explained 

"I wasn't aware human technology can imprint on us" Ratchet said as he crossed his arms 

"They can't, human technology is not as advanced as ours. No offense" Arcee said as Cody shrugged 

"So back to the mission, are you sure that's a good idea? You're barely recovering from...are you sure you are up for this?" Boulder asked as he looked at his brother in worry 

"Don't worry Boulder, we'll be back before you know it" Bulkhead reassured but did nothing to ease the others worries 

Boulder frowned as he went off to make sure his brother had anything he needed while his team went off to do their own thing until the next emergency. Meanwhile, Ultra Magnus studied the organic flora Cody still had in his hands which reminded him of the flora from his homeworld. 

"Cody what are these called?" Magnus asked, startling the young human as he looked at the large bot before him. 

Cody looked at the bouquet in his hands before answering. "These are roses, humans use them to show how much they love one another on certain occasions" 

"These _roses_ remind of the crystal gardens of Iacon, our people grew flora like this" Ultra Magnus informed as he took out an old holovid and showed Cody the gardens of Iacon

In awe, Cody admired the picture as he saw how they sparkled and shined. "Some of these flowers look like lilies and roses" 

As the two talked, ratchet had to end the conversation short as he had the groundbridge up and running for them to head off on their scouting mission. Blades was quick to get Cody a safe distance away as the portal appeared a few feet away from them. Things were going smoothly until the groundbridge short-circuited and created a vortex instead. It pulled in Ultra Magnus first, then Boulder, before it could take anyone else, Bulkhead hurled himself in the portal before it closed. 

Everyone vented or panted heavily as they turned to Ratchet who looked just as shocked as them. "Don't look at me, everything was in working order!" 

Before anyone could say anything a familiar voice was heard. **_/Strange energy readings were detected here. I've managed to shut down the source, you are welcome/_**

Heatwave growled when Vigil ended the message. "I hate that computer" he said as he ran a servo down his face


	3. Predacon Prisoner

Everything was dark, and the feeling of the sun’s rays hitting their armor was a clear indicator that they were not on Griffin Rock. Rebooting his systems, a certain green wrecker groaned as he sat up and rubbed his helm before worry flowed through his systems as he quickly stood to look around for his brother. 

“Boulder!” Bulkhead called out as he walked around calling his brother’s name many times “Boulder! Where are you!” 

Bulkhead searched for hours until he saw familiar blue plating and sighed in relief as he ran toward the other mech. The mech was quick to hear him and turned quickly as he raised his weapon before calming himself when seeing it was only Bulkhead. 

“Bulkhead, it is good to know that I was not the only one here,” Ultra Magnus said as he lowered his weapon to the ground

“Boulder isn’t with you? I saw him get pulled in, I can’t find him anywhere” Bulkhead began to ramble, worry clear in his voice 

“Worrying won’t help us find him, we best get a move on before the Decepticons find out that we are here...Wherever here is” Magnus said as he walked out into the rocky desert

Looking around Bulkhead began to recognize the scenery thanks to Raf. “I’m pretty sure we are at the Grand Canyon” 

As they searched the Canyon for Boulder, the rescue bot was already rebooting his systems, groaning he onlined his optics and looked at his surroundings, and seeing that he was in the Grand Canyon, he concluded he was stuck in Arizona. With a sigh he hauled himself and on shaky pedes, he managed to stand upright and take a better look at where he was. He activated his commlink but only static was heard and with that, he decided he should find Ultra Magnus and see if anyone else was pulled into the portal. It was many hours when the heat began to be too much for him and he was lucky enough to find shade but lucky enough to find any water to cool him off. 

“I hope someone finds me soon,” Bulkhead said as he leaned against the cool rocks and closed his optics, hoping to get some rest 

Unaware that he was being tracked down by known enemies of Team Prime, all the while Bulkhead and Ultra Magnus were resting in a cave as the Sun shone high above them. Bulkhead stared at nothing while Ultra Magnus continued to try to get into contact with the Autobots. With a scowl, Ultra Magnus ceased his attempts and punched the rock wall to his right. Bulkhead merely stared at him in an agitated manner and he didn’t need to blow a fuse just because what Magnus was doing was getting on his nerves. 

“I’m guessing no luck in getting into contact at base” Bulkhead said as ignored the glare sent his way 

“Getting into contact with the rest of the team is of the utmost importance” Magnus said and immediately regretted his choice of words when he saw Bulkhead’s withering glare

“We find my brother first, then we find a way to get into contact with the team” Bulkhead sternly said, standing he made his way out the cave

“You’ll fry your circuits if you go out in this heat” Ultra Magnus said but knew his words fell on deaf audios as Bulkhead was already out of sight. With a sigh he stood and followed the wrecker before he did anything rash. 

“If you’re here to convince me to wait then I don’t want to hear it” Bulkhead said with narrowed optics as he kept walking 

“I’m not here to convince you to do anything, but think of Boulder, he wouldn’t want you risking your health in finding him in this situation” Magnus said as Bulkhead stopped and hearing him sigh 

“Boulder is all I have left, I lost Breakdown to this war. I won’t lose Boulder” Bulkhead said as he turned to keep walking 

Ultra Magnus frowned but followed Bulkhead, their walk was quiet and no words were needed as they searched for the missing rescue bot. Unaware of the peering yellow optics staring from high above the skies. The predacon watched them for a while before flying ahead to inform his brethren of what he discovered. Though he cursed for not flying above the clouds as his shadow was cast over the two autobots who in turn began firing their weapons at him. He used his fire breath to attack the autobots and defend himself while he put as much distance as he could. 

It was the sound of an ion blast that knocked him out of the sky and at the mercy of the autobots. Landing on the earth’s surface sent his systems offline and the last thing he could see were humans coming toward him and firing blasts of the autobots. When his systems came online he found himself in a cave and surprisingly still online. He thought the autobots would’ve left him to his fate but here he was in a cave recovering from the earlier fight. 

‘How strange’ the predacon thought as he stood and had to suppress a wince and looked over at his wind found it twisted in an odd angle ‘When I find the ones who did they will pay’ he growled as he limped out the cave only to be met by one of the autobots who had their weapon ready. 

“I see your awake big guy. Didn’t know there were more of you besides Predaking” he said as he watched the predacon wearily before seeing his wing “I could help put that back into place. It’ll hurt like the pit though” 

The predacon growled but weighed his options, let his wing heal on its own, and head to the nemesis for it to be forcefully put back in place, OR, let the autobots put it back in place and let it heal correctly. With a sigh, he knew he made his choice as he slumped on the ground and waited for the autobot to fix his wing. The autobot turned his weapon back into his servo which the predacon found curious and stretched his neck to get a better look. The autobot watched as the predacon sniffed his servo before he slowly walked to his right and watched as the predacon eyed him. Placing two servos on the dislocated wing he looked at the predacon and hoped he wouldn’t be ripped into pieces. 

“Now uh...you won’t rip me into pieces right?” He asked as the predacon huffed at his question but nodded 

It was without warning that his wing was put back in place with a sickening pop and sending the autobot flying into a boulder. With a groan, the autobot looked at the predacon who was growling in order to cover the obvious pain he was in. Hearing the transformation sequence from his comrade he looked over to the distance and saw a familiar truck coming their way.

“Ultra Magnus is not going to be happy” He groaned out as the predacon crooned in curiosity when said autobot finally arrived and seeing the scowl on his faceplates made he young predacon flinch back but returned the scowl with a growl

Ultra Magnus sighed as he looked over at his companion who laughed sheepishly as he stood and walked over to him. “Do I need to ask how you ended up a foot away from our prisoner?, Bulkhead” 

“That’s best to say for another time” Bulkhead responded but scowled as the predacon made a gurgled like laugh 


	4. Unlikely Savior

The day could have gone worse for Boulder, though he didn’t really mean for Primus to actually take his word into account when he was frustrated. Being strapped on a human truck and bolted down on its trailer wasn’t a part of his agenda. He sighed and began to think back on how he ended up being in this mess in the first place. Beginning to recall how he ended up as a captive for some humans, he felt stupid for trusting new faces too easily. The entire memory was embarrassing, he first awoke to the sounds of vehicles coming toward him, blinking his optics open, he stared quizzically at the newcomers. Boulder smiled, thinking he was going to be rescued, he introduced himself to the humans and one of them greeted himself as Leland ‘Silas’ Bishop. That was where everything went downhill, Boulder wanted to ask them more questions but screamed out in agony as he was shocked by some type of weapon. It was a while when his systems fully rebooted that he found himself bolted and covered in a tarp. 

‘This is bad’ Boulder thought as he silently tested the strength of his restraints and seeing no luck of them moving an inch. He sighed and decided keeping quiet was a better idea at the moment and wondered how everyone else was faring better than he was at the moment. 

It was bad, the people of Griffin Rock were trapped in their own homes since Vigil declared everything a danger to them. The bots were locked up in the bunker with piles and piles of many roses, and other flowers that Vigil managed to get for Chase along with teddy bears. Heatwave was close to burning everything that Vigil kept giving to the police car, Arcee was contemplating blasting their way out but the explanation the Burns would have to give to foreign technology and the smoking hole on the entrance hatch to the bunker would be difficult. Optimus couldn’t do much as he was still in recovery and from Ratchet’s orders was not to regain command until he was cleared for duty. 

“I’m getting tired of this, I say we shut off that bucket of bolts once and for all” Heatwave snapped as he saw another bouquet of flowers being sent by a drone from Vigil 

“I agree…” Chase said as he took the bouquet and threw it behind him where it landed on the ever-growing pile of gifts

“How? We are locked in and Vigil already knows that there are more ‘rescue bots’ here” Arcee bluntly said, making Heatwave growl in frustration

“Though Vigil is taking extreme measures, he is only doing what the humans programmed him to do,” Optimus said as he walked out the medical bay with Ratchet following behind him 

“Though his programming must've had a glitch in his mainframe is making Vigil act this way” Ratchet hypothesized as the most logical occurrence 

_ ::Whatever is causing Vigil to act this way, we can’t let it continue. At this rate he can deem us threats to Griffin Rock:: Bumblebee said as he then pointed over to Chase ::No matter how much he likes Chase, Agh!:: The scout rubbed his helm as he glared over at the enforcer and immediately backed down when seeing tire rims wrapped in a blue bow in his servos  _

“That is beside the point and one that shouldn’t be brought up again” Chase snapped as Heatwave slowly took the car part away from his servos and set it beside their makeshift couch

“We need a way to get out of the firehouse and somewhere Vigil can’t detect us” Wheeljack began before a smirk graces his face

“Wheeljack” Ratchet warned, crossing his arms as a scowl appeared to show his disapproval 

“Relax Sunshine, it won’t be as bad as you think” Wheeljack reassured but did nothing to ease the worry on everyone’s processors 

With a groan, Heatwave placed a servo on his helm and shook his head. “This is not going to end well”

It wasn’t surprising that things did end badly but not in the way everyone thought, Wheeljack for once managed to not blow anything up during their escape. Though Chief Burns did wonder what happened in the bunker after seeing the destruction that Wheeljack’s tempering with the ground-bridge had caused. Ratchet and Optimus stayed behind, though unhappy they have to deal with the mess while the others fix Vigil, or offline the computer if he can’t be reasoned with. 

_ ::So what now?:: Bumblebee asked as he looked over the town ::We can’t just walk up into town, the humans will see us and no doubt Vigil will know we are more than robots:: _

“And Vigil is more than just a computer, he has already proven he can do things that no other human technology could do in their lifetime” Chase informed as the others looked at him in surprise “It doesn’t mean I am enjoying the attention he is giving to me” he snapped as they awkwardly stood in the outskirts of town as they looked anywhere but Chase

“Let’s get a move on, Hightide knows about the situation and he’s expecting us in a few clicks” Arcee informed as Blades sighed when he saw his friends follow Arcee deeper into the forest

“Why do I get the feeling that this isn't going to end well,” Blades said as he followed the others as the sudden feeling of dread washed over him

As they moved on from town, Boulder in the meantime was now in some lab in the middle of nowhere. His communication systems were easily disabled and having humans whisper and murmur about his biology was uncomfortable to hear at all. They didn’t waste any time looking into his internal systems and as much as the entire ordeal made him scream in agony. He became numb after just a few hours of them cutting off his armor and draining a small pint of his Energon. The only thought on his mind was whether his big brother would find him with reinforcements in time before the humans managed to offline him. Closing his optics, he drowned out the human's excited whispers and murmurs, he didn’t think much of their screaming and machines being destroyed. Boulder was far too weak to be concerned with what was going on in his surroundings and feeling someone being close to him. That was what caused him to weakly blink his optics open and see two yellow optics staring straight at him. Staring at those optics closely he noticed something different about them besides the color. Everything went black before he could think more about the other as the exhaustion finally won over. 

The unknown stranger stared at Boulder’s prone form before looking over at his comrade who held a deep scowl on his face as he snarled and snapped at the air. “He’s not here and we’ve searched everywhere!” he roared as he punched the human equipment that was still standing after the fight 

“We will find him soon Darksteel, on the other servo we did find what I believe to be an Autobot due to its symbol,” The other said as he frowned at the strange symbol on Boulder’s chest “Though it does not appear to be of any Autobot symbol I’ve ever seen” 

“Forget the SYMBOL! My brother is missing! I should have never let him go on his own!” Darksteel growled out as his leader frowned once more 

“Skylynx is capable of handling himself. But for now, we take this mech to out temporary lair and see if he knows anything about the Autobots” he said as he turned to release Boulder from the chain pinning him to the ground

“He doesn’t look like a bot meant for war, Predaking,” Darksteel said one he took a closer look at the green bot 

Predaking looked down at the bot he now carried in his arms and had to agree with Darksteel. The bot seemed as if he never experienced combat in his entire functioning. “No, He doesn’t. Let’s get out of here before the humans decided to come back” He said quickly 

Not wasting any time they made their way out the cave the humans decided to reside in and transformed into their beast mode. Predaking had to settle Boulder on the ground first before he could carry him in his clawed servos, and took to the sky and avoided going near the ground as a precaution. The two flew for hours until they arrived at their cave, Darksteel was the first to transform into his Bi-pede mode to take Boulder from his King then walk into the cave. Hearing his leader transform behind him didn’t make him falter on his task, no matter how protective Predaking suddenly seemed. Darksteel continued to analyze his wounds and tsked at the damage the humans caused. 

“He needs a proper healer. I’m not qualified or trained to do any medical work” Darksteel informed as he took one more glance at their guest

“Then you’ll have to train yourself then. I’ll be back with materials needed to heal him” Predaking stated before Darksteel could utter a single word. The predacon was already walking back out of the cave and flying into the night sky. 

Darksteel stood in place for a while not comprehending what he heard, he blinked not once but three times as the conversation finally sunk in. “Why do I even bother at this point?” he sighed before turning around to face the green mech “You must’ve done something to make Predaking want to help an Autobot such as yourself. At least, I think you’re an Autobot?” 

Boulder didn’t reply which wasn’t surprising as he was still in deep stasis to recover from the traumatic experience with the humans. Darksteel said nothing as he began to analyze more of Boulder’s wounds and winced at the torn wires and missing plating. The first thing this mech needed was Energon and quickly, the young predacon pulled out a cube of Energon from his subspace and moved closer to the unconscious mech. Darksteel tipped the mech’s head slightly and began to pour the Energon down the mech’s throat. Being a medic wasn’t a part of his programming but he was willing to learn if it meant finding his brother quicker the sooner the mech was healed.


	5. Found

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for being late with the chapter but online school kept me busy and I had to keep myself from having a few mental breakdowns. But I'm back and ready to update more of this story. I hope you enjoy this chapter and don't forget to leave a comment and a kudos.

Things weren’t going as planned, but then again Bulkhead was the one who charged into battle and ignored everything Ultra Magnus had planned. And getting stuck in a cave with the only entrance was the predacon's fault. Now they all sat there, Bulkhead and the predacon looking sheepish, as Ultra Magnus glared and mumbled his displeasure. 

“One simple plan, we’ve agreed and strategized on one plan” Magnus began as Bulkhead groaned 

“Come on Magnus, I said I was sorry” Bulkhead groaned but with a piercing glare from his superior he shut his intake 

“And then you had to involve the predacon into your rampage against M.E.C.H which cost us the battle” Magnus hissed as the predacon growled but remained somewhat calm “Now we are stuck in here thanks to the both of you” 

“At least we managed to ruin Silas’s plans” Bulkhead offered but it only made Magnus scowl more “Okay shutting up now,” he said as the predacon yawned, making his boredom known

The young predacon ignored the two autobots and looked back at his wing, he shifted his shoulder struts and winced a little as the sore muscle was still tender. With a huff he laid his head between his two front paws, the bots weren’t as bad as he thought nor what the Decepticons said they said they were. To say not transforming into his bi-pede mode to talk with them was disheartening until his wing healed properly. Bulkhead was nice and overprotective but from their recent actions, he had to admit they could both be hard-headed as the humans say. Though he disliked being called predacon as if it was his designation, he has been coming up with a few plans to tell them his identity but they all proved useless when it came to the more complicated parts. 

‘How did Predaking deal with being in beast form for so long and without talking for that matter’ he thought with a frown before picking up a familiar scent ‘oh you’ve got to be fragging kidding me’ with a groan he stood and began to follow the scent deeper into the cave, hearing the Autobots beginning to follow didn’t deter him from his goal. 

“What’s he doing?” Bulkhead whispered as Ultra Magnus shrugged as they continued to follow the young predacon 

“He might’ve picked up a scent familiar to him, let us hope it is energon and not more of his comrades,” Ultra Magnus said, tensing already as he could hear faint sounds up ahead of them. 

“that’s reassuring Magnus” Bulkhead muttered as he continued to follow the young predacon through the cave network of tunnels

Ignoring the other two, the predacon was happy that they let him continue on his path before he stopped and ran off leaving the autobots to chase after him. Running through the maze of tunnels in the dark was easy if you were a beastformer and not a couple of grounders who kept tripping over their two pedes during their chase. Bulkhead lost sight of him when he rounded a corner and when he followed suit with Ultra Magnus in tow, they were met with two predacons in their bipede form. 

“SKYLYNX” A blue predacon snapped as he saw his wayward brother smiling cheekily at him and their leader 

“We can reprimand him later, Darksteel. For the moment we deal with the two Autobots” Predaking said as he turned to the wreckers 

Seeing the upcoming fight, Skylynx got in between the two groups and growled as he gestured to his already healing wing. Predaking stood his ground as did Bulkhead and Ultra Magnus as they wearily watched Predaking examine the splint on Skylynx’s wing strut. 

“How did this happen?” Predaking calmly said as he stood up from his kneeled position as he turned to the other two bots 

“MECH managed to ambush us and managed to injure your comrade during the battle” Ultra Magnus informed, tense as he and Bulkhead watched all three predacons wearily

“He is well taken care of...Megatron had made it clear that Autobots do not keep prisoners” Predaking muttered as he recalled his own interaction with the Decepticon Lord

“We autobots may not be saints but we don’t deactivate any Decepticon prisoners just because we are in a war” Bulkhead said before taking a step back when Darksteel was suddenly in his personal space “I uh...can I help you?” 

“You look similar to that green bot we found when we infiltrated a secret human base. Though he is much smaller and has a lighter shade of green for a paint job” Darksteel informed before yelping as bulkhead ran right past him and further into their temporary den “Was it something I said?” 

“The mech you described is his younger brother. We have been looking for him until we came across Skylynx. Then had to defend ourselves against MECH” Ultra Magnus informed before they all followed Predaking deeper into the cave to see Bulkhead kneeling next to an injured Boulder.

“What happened?” Bulkhead asked as the tone in his voice spoke volumes to his rising anger 

“MECH” was the only answer that Predaking had as he motioned for his younger companions to get behind him, afraid of what the autobot would do in his anger 

Ultra Magnus walked up to the distraught mech and laid a servo on his shoulder, a silent command for him to keep his emotions in check. With a sigh, Bulkhead gave one last look at his brother before turning back to the others. 

“Thank you...for patching him up,” Bulkhead said, giving a faint smile 

“You are welcome autobot but Darksteel is the one you should be expressing your gratitude, he managed to heal your brother well enough even with no medical training” Predaking informed as he couldn’t help but gloat as Darksteel shook it off but was secretly enjoying the praise.

“Ratchet would be impressed with his work. Not even a rookie medic does this good of a job on their first patient” Ultra Magnus said as Darksteel smiled at the complement 

“How long has he been in stasis?” Bulkhead asked suddenly, sitting beside Boulder as if he just had a nightmare reflux 

Darksteel hummed as the answer was a mystery to him. “When we found him, he was already in stasis but that was a few solar cycles later. With us, he was in stasis for six orns before you found us” 

Bulkhead had no response as he leaned against the cool rock wall and let Magnus do the talking until they went their separate ways. Darksteel frowned but let the matter drop and went to inspect his brother’s wing strut, a few quick examinations were enough to tell that his wing strut was healing nicely. Luckily he had no need to dislocate it again to realign it properly for his brother to transform into beast and mech form. Skylynx grunted as his wing still ached from being realigned but hearing from Darksteel that he would be able to transform back into mech form soon was a relief. 

“You autobots are not what Megatron pointed you out to be” Predaking quietly said as Ultra Magnus hummed in response 

“Megatron is good at telling lies, it is how he built his army and convinced innocent sparks to join him” Magnus informed as he recalled old times “But he wasn’t always like that, he was once a minor, gladiator, brother, friend, lover...but he changed and so did his revolution” 

Predaking didn’t need an answer to know who Megatron once cared for so deeply enough for him to constantly seek him out during battle. Instead, he asked, “I see...he used his silver glossa to trick us into serving him then” 

“I will not hold it against you and your brethren of any deed you may have done. But Wheeljack may be hard to convince” Magnus chuckled as Predaking snorted 

“We have a lot to discuss on our new alliance then if you are willing to have us in your troops,” Predaking said as Ultra Magnus smiled 

“We would be honored to have you on our side,” Magnus said as he held out his servo which Predaking gladly clasped in his own


	6. Vigil’s New Objective

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the wait. School has kept me busy then there are writing chapters for my other stories. I will try to update when I can. Enjoy this chapter folks :)

Griffin Rock was, to say the least, was now under Vigil’s reign, Chase watched from behind the energy shield he was trapped as his friends try to reason with the computer. How he got into his current predicament was all Smokescreen’s fault and for the first time, he couldn’t blame Blurr for looking just as confused when Smokescreen ran headfirst into one of Vigil’s traps. He watched Heatwave’s poor attempt at controlling his temper and Blades poor attempt to calm him down which only made Vigil hyper-aware of “possible threats” to the town and his well-being. 

“Vigil I’m sure there’s some way to talk things out” Blurr began then yelped as he was pulled out the way of a laser shot 

“That was close” Smokescreen muttered as he held Blurr close to him 

The bots stared at the spot Blurr once stood in, the ground was still showing smoke as the metal was charcoal black. “I thought Vigil was supposed to protect not attack” Blades muttered as he stood behind Bumblebee 

_::Vigil that’s going too far!:: Bumblebee beeped angrily_

“VIGIL WHAT ARE YOU DOING!” Chase yelled as he banged against his prison 

“I am merely doing what I have been programmed to do” he stated “I must protect Griffin Rock from danger” 

“But you are causing more harm to them than you are protecting!” Chase yelled 

Vigil stood quiet, processing Chase’s words as the silence had everyone on edge. Arcee twitched her servos as the tension grew. It took Chase several moments to process what Vigil was doing before his optics widened in alarm. “RUN!” 

The others didn’t need to be told twice as they split into different directions as the sounds of laser fire shot out of every direction of the lab. Arcee and Bumblebee immediately began to fire their own weapons at the computer only to find Vigil protected by new drones much bigger than the one they have seen often. Smokescreen fired his weapon on the new threat as they fired at them, he panted as he hid from the oncoming fire before hearing a scream of pain. 

“Blurr!” Blades yelled out in worry and panic 

Smokescreen looked up from his hiding spot and found blurr clutching his leg, a steady flow of energon staining the floor. He didn’t hear anything as he saw red, running out into the open. He avoided the oncoming as best he could but often he would feel the stinging burns of laser fire scrape against his plating. Firing his own weapon at the new drones as he made his way over to Blurr, not caring of the orders he was receiving from Hightide or Arcee. It was the excruciating pain that made him fall to the ground, his shoulder burned in agony as he struggled to stand. 

“Struggling is futile” Vigil’s voice boomed as his drones continued their attack 

_::Smokescreen!:: Bumblebee yelled as he tried to make his way to him but the oncoming fire kept him cornered_

Looking over at the purple bot not far from him, Smokescreen struggled onto his pedes as he made his way toward the unconscious bot. The drones ignored him as they fired upon his team, finally arriving where Blurr was, he grimaced at the wound. Chase watched in horror as his team hid behind Team Prime as they fought against the drones. Feeling optic fluid stream down his face he couldn’t bear to see much more of the fight, he turned to Vigil and only saw the computer give commands to his drones. 

“VIGIL STOP!” 

Immediately the fighting ceased as the drones just stood still while the others held their weapons high in case the drones were to fire again. Everyone turned toward Chase and froze at the state he was in, he was on his knees as tears streamed down his face. Fear clearly showing in his optics, Team Prime turned to face the other rescue bots and found that they were showing signs of distress except for Hightide who was already doing first aid on Blurr. They were lucky enough Salvage and Wheeljack stayed outside the lab to keep anyone from entering. 

Chase sobbed as he pleaded with Vigil, “Vigil please stop” 

Everyone panted as they waited for Vigil to speak, Chase continued to sob as the horror he witnessed was more brutal than the one he had seen back when Vehicons came to Griffin Rock. Hightide stood and worry was clear in his optics as he watched the young enforcer breakdown in front of everyone. Heatwave stood next to Blades as they hid behind Hightide for protection while occasionally sparing glances at Blurr. 

“You all shall leave, but Chase stays with me. My New objective is Protect Rescue Bot Chase” Vigil declared 

“Like scrap, you are keeping him here!” Hightide barked out in anger as he took a step forward before being flung across the room by a drone 

“GO!” Chase yelled 

“We aren’t leaving you chase!” Blades yelled in defiance 

“There’s no point in getting yourself killed if you try to free me” Chase argued as he watched the defeated look in his friend's optics “Go, Vigil won’t hurt me” choking on his own words as he held back his sobs 

“Will come back for you Chase, I promise,” Heatwave said as he took Blurr into his arms as Blades helped Smokescreen onto his pedes while Bumblebee and Arcee helped Hightide

“I know you will” Chase whispered 

They all looked at Chase one more time before they reluctantly left the lab to meet Wheeljack and Salvage outside. With a broken spark, Chase watched them leave in relief that they were safe for now but his new worries are what Vigil has in store for him and Griffin Rock. Vigil watched them leave and made altercations to Doctor Greene’s security to keep intruders out and Chase inside. He lowered the energy shield trapping Chase, he commanded for one of his drones to take Chase into his new living quarters. Chase heard the drone coming near him and fearfully scooted away from the drone. 

“My drone will not harm you. It will take you into your new quarters” Vigil informed as Chase looked at him then at the drone 

Standing on wobbly pedes, Chase hugged himself as he followed the drone out the basement of the lab while Vigil continued to reprogram himself. While his friends were already outside with Wheeljack helping to hold Hightide steady as Salvage worried over Blurr’s condition. 

“What happened,” Wheeljack said calmly, sending shivers down everyone's spinal strut at the tone used

“We were caught off guard,” Arcee said before looking at the others “We need to get back to the firehouse” 

Whelljack nodded solemnly noticing the wounds littered across each of their frames, “I'll comm Ratchet to prepare the medbay” 

He transformed into his vehicle mode and waited for Bumblebee and Blades to place Smokescreen and Blurr onto the trailer the Burn's family provided and drove off with the others following. The drive was quiet as the defeat weighed heavily among them when they arrived back at the firehouse with the Burns family waiting for them outside. They ignored their questions as they drove silently into the station as they went below to the bunker. Ratchet was there as he motioned for Bumblebee to carry Blurr into one of the medical slabs and began to tend to his wound. 

“I need an Energon drip stat” Ratchet barked as Blades was quick to grab what the medic needed

“Where is Chase?” Optimus asked when noticing the young enforcer was not among them 

Silence remained as the battle was still running through their processors, Arcee turned to punch the wall as she breathed heavily. “WHERE WAS THAT FRAGGING COMPUTER BUILT!” 

“What happened at Doctor Greene’s Lab?” Optimus asked calmly as he saw the defeated looks in their optics 

“Vigil had us cornered, he is learning and adapting each minute” Hightide groaned as laid against the wall 

_::He managed to build war drones:: Bumblebee informed wincing as Blades put cooling salve on his arm_

“We failed Optimus, he took us by surprise. We weren’t prepared for what Vigil had in store for us” Arcee said in defeat “He can’t be dealt with” 

It was then Optimus realized that Chase was practically handed over to Vigil on a silver platter when they left to negotiate with the computer. “He has Chase” he whispered in horror 


	7. Getting Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edit [11/12/2020]: Forgot that Darksteel is the medic in training, not Skylynx.

Everything was dark, the numbness was turning into a dull pain, optics onlining he groaned as he raised a servo to his helm. He hissed when he tried sitting up which attracted the attention of a certain Predacon. “You shouldn’t do that” 

The young bot was startled as he looked straight into yellow optics, “Who…” wincing at the sound of his voice. He shakily rubbed his throat as a cube of Energon was presented to him. 

“Drink this, it will help,” the predacon said as the young bot shakily took the cube into his servos 

“Thank you” 

With a smile, the predacon responded, “Predaking, young one. I shall inform your friends that you are awake” with that said he left the rescue bot alone before pedesteps were quick to enter the cave 

“Boulder!” the other bot yelled as said bot smiled broadly 

“Bulkhead!” 

The two brothers hugged each other before Boulder hissed, Bulkhead was quick to let go before frowning at the missing plating. “We need to find a way to get into contact with the rest of the team” 

“I’m fine Bulk, just a bit sore” Boulder reassured before he frowned “By the way, how long did you know Predaking?” 

Bulkhead was surprised by the sudden question but answered anyway, “He used to be part of the Decepticon army. Now he and his comrades are allies to the Autobot resistance” 

Boulder stayed silent as he stared into the cube of Energon, “He saved me you know” 

Bulkhead smiled, “Yeah, I know and I owe him for that” 

Boulder’s smile faltered when he remembered exactly what the humans did to him, “I didn’t know humans can be so cruel” 

Bulkhead frowned as the guilt weighed heavy on his spark, “I’m sorry for not telling you about MECH” 

“Well I didn’t plan on leaving Griffin Rock but it would’ve been appreciated” Bould quietly said as he took small sips of energon 

Bulkhead sighed and the two brothers enjoyed the mutual silence for a while as they listened to the calm winds blowing outside. Boulder long finished his cube and thought of Predaking, flashes of his time in MECH’s hands showed the older mech and another there when they rescued him. He thought of his team and wondered how they were doing and if the problem with Vigil had been resolved. Bulkhead noticed his brother’s troubled expression and was about to point it out before heavy pedesteps were heard entering the cave. 

“Ultra Magnus sir” Bulkhead greeted “Still no contact with the team?” 

“I’m afraid so, Usually my commlink can work through these parts but I’m afraid our way of travel has rendered them useless” Magnus responded grimly 

“Why not build a radio tower?” Boulder asked 

“Too risky little bro, The Decepticons will be able to find our frequency and lead them to us or Griffin Rock” Bulkhead replied making Boulder frown “But it was a good idea either way” he reassured 

“The Predacons went to patrol the parameter, Only Darksteel remained here to make sure his patient doesn’t do anything…“stupid” as he put it” Magnus grumbled 

Boulder snorted as a smile graced his face before noticing the awkward patch job, “It was nice of him to repair me” 

Magnus huffed, “Though he is a rookie in Ratchet’s terms I believe with proper training he will become a skilled medic” 

Unknown to the three of them, Darksteel overheard every single word and beamed in pride at the praise he received from an Autobot commander. With a smile, he went back to focusing on his task and awaited for his King and brother to return from patrol. He thought of the rest of the Autobots and wondered what they were like, He knew Predaking had a past with them. But he wouldn't specifically say much about them until he met three of them and they weren’t what Megatron had said about them. 

“You know crushing Energon crystals is gonna take forever if you just stare at it”

Startled, Darksteel looked over at the cave entrance and scowled, “You’re supposed to be on patrol Skylynx” he said as he got back to work 

“Relax, Predaking is just doing a runaround before he comes back,” Skylynx said as he entered the cave 

“Well then you can help me turn these crystals into consumable Energon” Darksteel replied as his brother snorted 

“Yeah, we don’t a repeat of last time” 

Darksteel stopped crushing crystals and was about to snap at his brother before it changed to a sneer when seeing his brother fly off again. Predaking returned once he left and saw the scowl on his charge’s face. “I take it Skylynx did not want to help with the Energon?” 

“He’s only younger by a click, I shouldn’t blame him but he should learn responsibility” Darksteel responded as Predaking chuckled 

“He will learn, and you must learn to “loosen up” as Skylynx loves to say” 

Darksteel frowned as he continued to add more crystals to the rock bowl he made, “I like my way of doing things but I will take your thought into consideration” 

With a smile Predaking went to sit next to him and grabbed another handmade bowl and added a few Energon crystals, “This would get done much quicker if two were working together” 

Darksteel didn’t answer but he smiled nonetheless as he continued his work with Predaking’s help while Skylynx enjoyed his flight. With the young predacon he whooped as he flew through the clouds and watched the wildlife below him. He would’ve enjoyed his peaceful flight but the sudden angered message coming from the Warlord himself made him land quickly. 

“Lord Megatron” 

“Skylynx, where are you and your fellow Predacons” Megatron asked 

“We are currently sweeping the area, my lord, we had a few run-ins with the humans but nothing we couldn’t handle” he reported 

“Why couldn’t I get ahold of Predaking,” Megatron asked, his anger rising 

Skylynx hesitated but replied, “We had to split up as Predaking said it would cover more ground in searching for the Autobots” 

Megatron stayed silent before responding, “Don’t let this happen again or you and your kin will be facing the consequences. Am I clear” in a malicious tone 

Skylynx gulped in fear as he responded, “Yes Lord Megatron” 

With that the comm call ended as Skylynx stood frozen for a couple of clicks before transforming and flying back to their temporary base. When he arrived predaking was speaking with Ultra Magnus, his leader looked over at him and immediately came toward when seeing his frightened frame. “Skylynx, what happened out there?” 

Skylynx looked at him and replied, “Megatron isn’t happy” 

Predaking mood changed to one of anger, “That is going too far” 

“Agreed, Megatron basically threatened a youngling” Ultra Magnus responded 

“We are leaving, once we arrive at your new base we will have our comm frequencies changed” Predaking stated “Magnus, you and your comrade will ride on my back, my kin will carry-” 

“Boulder. His name is Boulder” Bulkhead quickly said 

Predaking nodded, “Boulder will be carried by Skylynx, Darksteel will switch with him when it is time for us to rest” 

“Then we best get a move on before Soundwave manages to find our location” Magnus stated “I’ll go retrieve Boulder” he paused when seeing narrowed optics “With your supervision of course Darksteel” 

With a hum, Darksteel went to the back of the cave with Ultra Magnus following to get Boulder ready for travel. Predaking smiled as he shook his head before turning to Skylynx, “If Megatron contacts you again ignore it” he said before walking out of the cave

Skylynx watched him leave before turning to Bulkhead, “Uh...How do I render my commlink useless like yours” 

Bulkhead choked on air as he turned to look at Skylynx, “First off our comms are fried because of a groundbridge malfunction. Second I don’t think Predaking would like if I tell you how” 

Skylynx frowned but let the subject drop as walked out of the cave to wait with Predaking. Bulkhead sighed but Boulder’s grunts of pain made him focus on the rescue bot. “Boulder why don’t you let Magnus carry you?” 

“I’m not invalid” Boulder responded before wincing 

Magnus sighed as he ran a servo down his face, “Stubborn as Bulkhead, I’ll give you that” 

Boulder glared at him before sighing in defeat, “I could use a little help” 

Magnus nodded and carefully lifted Bulkhead into his arms while Skylynx made sure he was comfortable and not in so much pain. Bulkhead followed them outside and had to suppress a groan knowing he might be purging his tanks soon. Predaking growled in a clear warning that didn’t need to be translated as skylynx transformed for Magnus to place Boulder on his back. Once Boulder was settled, Bulkhead carefully got onto Predaking’s back along with Ultra Magnus and screamed as Predaking suddenly took off with Darksteel and Skylynx following behind him. 


	8. A Night’s Rest

The evening was eventful, Darksteel tended to Boulder’s wounds and would often make snarky comments about overreacting bots as Bulkhead and Ultra Magnus glared at him. Boulder couldn’t help but snicker at the two which earned an annoyed grunt from his brother. Ultra Magnus paid no attention to him but a frown graced his face as he grumbled about the events that transpired before. 

Skylynx scoffed as he looked at the two autobots, “You two are overacting. It wasn’t that bad” 

Bulkhead looked at him incredulously before he glared at the youngest predacon, “He dropped us” he pointed out 

“That was an accident” Predaking responded as he poked at the fire 

“So forgetting we were on your back was an accident,” Magnus said with a glare as Predaking rolled his optics at the accusation 

“Please how could I forget two mechs who weigh more than a common earth vehicle” 

“Is that a crack about our weight!” Bulkhead snapped 

Predaking was about to respond when Boulder cut in with a nervous laugh when he saw the small argument could get physical, “I’m sure he didn’t mean it that way Bulk, look we’re all tired and the predacons are more exhausted than us since they flew for miles” 

“Boulder is right, we should get some rest before are lack of recharge makes us do things we might regret,” Magnus said as he stretched his limbs “Have a good lunar cycle, everyone” 

“Night Magnus” Bulkhead responded before letting out a yawn “He has the right idea though. I’ll see everyone in the morning” 

Boulder smiled as he watched his brother make himself comfortable on the ground, he looked over at Ultra Magnus and found him sleeping against the steel wall of the abandoned human compound. Skylynx was already recharging as he carried Boulder for most of their trip when Darksteel insisted he could carry him. 

“There, all done,” Darksteel said bringing Boulder out his musings, “Try not to move around much, until your plating gets replaced” 

“You’re good at this...Are you sure you aren’t a medic?” Boulder asked making Darksteel think for a moment 

“No. I’m off to recharge and listen to what I said,” he said before transforming into his beast form to curl up beside his brother. Who only grunted and groggily got up making room for his brother then laid down beside him with a blue wing draping over him. 

Predaking smiled while staring at the fire he managed to create by digging a hole in the compound floor then using his fire breath in beast form to light the fire. He stared at the flames when feeling optics trained on him. Looking over he saw Boulder’s optics widened before a tinge of blue was clearly seen on his faceplate. 

“It’s alright, I’ve had many looks when bots first saw me and my kin” 

Boulder was caught by surprise at the response but was quick to respond in embarrassment, “Oh! I didn’t mean to stare, It’s just...I mean...You see” Flustered her groaned into his servos as Predaking chuckled 

“I am not offended, by your knowledge the Predacon race has been extinct for many millennia,” Predaking said with a sad smile 

Boulder frowned at the thought of being reborn in a new era with no one but two others of his people. When he found out about the Rescue Bot extermination after his team recovered from stasis he mourned his fellow rescue bots for many solar cycles. He still misses them but grieving over them won’t bring them back from the well of allsparks. Noticing his sudden change of mood Predaking was about to ask before Boulder replaced his frown with a smile. 

“I didn’t get to thank you properly for saving me” 

Predaking didn’t mention the change in topic but smiled, “It was only natural. I couldn’t leave you there in the hands of humans” Realizing what he said he quickly corrected himself, “I mean we...We couldn’t leave you there” 

Boulder giggled as Predaking became flustered, “It’s alright. I am grateful for what both of you did” giving the predacon a smile 

The other couldn’t help but smile at Boulder’s words before remembering how late it was, “We should get some recharge before sunrise comes” 

Boulder nodded as he watched Predaking go to put out the fire, the room was covered in darkness as the animals became more active as the moon showed high above them. Hearing soft grunts, the young rescue bot turned his attention to predaking who was now in his beast mode enveloping the younger predacons with a wing draped over them. With a smile, Boulder wished the other goodnight and his response was a soft croon before recharge claimed the two. Unaware that blue narrowed optics watched the Predacon for a moment before looking over at the young rescue bot. 

‘I am so going to kick his aft when this is all over’ was Bulkhead’s thought as he went back to recharge 

As they rested, one bot worked on finding the autobot’s location to no avail. Setting his cassette to roam around the throne room; the silent bot continued his work looking for any signs that might lead them to any autobot survivors. Hearing the doors swoosh open alerted him to his leader’s presence. 

“Soundwave Report” 

_ /Location of the autobots unsuccessful/  _

Megatron frowned and took his anger on the nearest vehicon in the room while the others were motioned to leave by the decepticon third in command. “WHERE ARE THEY!” he roared 

_ /Soundwave: has discovered Autobots have cloaking technology. Location unknown/  _

Megatron growled as he sat upon his throne and gazed at the monitor before a sudden comm call caught his interests. “Who is it?” 

_ /Identification: MECH/  _

The warlord sneered at the mention of the human organization that turned one of his most loyal followers into a monster. Soundwave was going to cut the connection until Megatron stopped him, “Answer it. If they waste my time then send a squadron to deal with them permanently” 

Soundwave nodded and connected the comm line and a familiar human appeared on screen with a confident grin that annoyed Megatron. “Megatron it is good to get in touch with you” 

“Out with it Silas” the Warlord snapped as Soundwave worked in finding the human’s base 

With a frown, Silas responded, “A partnership. Just until we both get what we want” 

Megatron cackled at the idea Soundwave found the human’s confidence amusing as he recalled Laserbeak back to his chest. “What makes you think, I would agree with something like that?” 

“Not even for information on the autobots?” Silas countered back making Megatron sneer at him 

“I am not falling for an organic trick, Soundwave cut the line” he ordered 

Before Silas could say a word the call went dead as Soundwave had the human’s location at the ready. Waiting for Megatron’s command as the Warlord muttered curses before signaling for soundwave to get rid of MECH once and for all. Seeing the silver mech leave, Soundwave was left to his devices, and with a few codes typed he managed to get access to one of the humans' satellites. Putting in the coordinates he activated the laser beam and went to do another task while MECH scrambled to get out of the vicinity of an American government weapon. Silas watched in anger as he screamed out his frustration as the beam hit its target. Annihilating the underground corporation that was once M.E.C.H


	9. Speaking to Vigil

Griffin Rock was now under Vigil’s reign, Chase was doing what he could to prevent Vigil from harming anyone that posed a threat to him. The bots were now under constant watch while the Burns Family weren’t allowed to interact with them. Fowler and June were under constant stress as Jack, Miko, and Raph watched everything happen around them. Fowler watched every single piece of tech with a cautious gaze while June prepared dinner with Miko and Jack. 

“I wonder how everyone is doing?” Raphael muttered as he peeled the potatoes 

“I’m sure they’re fine. They’ll have this sorted out in no time” Jack reassured as he set the table 

Fowler remained quiet as he thought of ways to get into contact with Team Prime, it's been days since he last contacted them and he was beginning to worry. Noticing the stressed agent, June let out a sigh, asking Miko to keep an eye on the stove while she left for the dining area. Fowler didn’t notice her until she placed her hand atop of his with a smile on her face. “They will be okay, they haven’t let us down yet” 

With a tired sigh Fowler lowered his phone and held June’s hand in his own, “Can’t help but worry, we already had to flee Nevada and now we are stuck under another dictator” 

“We managed to overcome a lot of things back in Jasper, we can do it again” June reassured 

Fowler let out another sigh before the smell of something burning caught his attention. “PUT IT OUT” Jack panicked 

“I’M TRYING!” Miko yelled back

“OH SCRAP, YOU TWO ARE MAKING IT WORSE!” Raph yelled in panic as the smoke alarm went off 

June and Fowler were quick to enter the kitchen and found the stove on fire and Miko using a rag as a fan to blow out the fire. Jack was trying to use cups of water to put out the fire but ultimately failed while Raph was yelling at them to stop what they were doing. Without thinking Fowler grabbed the fire extinguisher hanging off the wall and ran between Jack and Miko and sprayed foam all over the stove. June merely watched as she saw scorch marks all over her kitchen while Miko and Jack smiled sheepishly at her. 

“I only took my eyes off it for just a minute” Miko began before a familiar call came through their home 

_/Fire was detected at the Daniel Residence, Drones will arrive shortly to process the damage/_ Vigil’s voice rang out as Miko glared 

“Why don’t you shove a pipe up your a-” 

“Thank you Vigil but we have everything under control there is no need to check up on us” June interrupted as Miko huffed 

_/Understood/_ Vigil said before disconnecting the call 

Fowler was confused at Vigil’s sudden dismissive behavior but the thought was quickly forgotten when hearing June sigh. Examining the damage he realized they were going to have to get a new stove and renovate one side of the kitchen. “Anyone up for some Chinese food?” 

“Yeah!” The kids cheered as June scowled but grabbed the phone from the landline to make the order 

With a sheepish smile, everyone got to work cleaning the kitchen while June greeted the employee as she made their order. Miko chirped in a side order as did Jack and Raph; June rolled her eyes but added their side dishes to the order. With a thank you, June hung up the phone and began to help tidy up the kitchen as best as they all could. Fowler was still thinking about Vigil’s behavior and found it odd that the computer didn’t enforce any safety regulations. After thirty minutes of cleaning they heard the doorbell ring, wiping his hands on a clean rag, Fowler went to open the door. Grabbing his wallet along the way, opening the door he smiled at the teen and gave him the payment, and letting him keep the change while he took the bags of food and closed the door. June took one of the bags and placed it on the dining table where she began to set the food. 

“This isn’t going to be an everyday thing, tomorrow we are going to get a new stove,” June said calmly but the stern tone in her voice was heard loud and clear 

With a nervous chuckle, Fowler responded, “Yes, ma'am” 

Soon everyone was at the dinner table eating and talking while they remained careful of what was said as they knew Vigil was always watching. Meanwhile, with the Burns family, they were having dinner as they remained tense as one of Vigil’s drones would often drop by to check up on them before leaving. Dani was beginning to go crazy with worry as none of the bots have contacted them yet even though they live in the bunker. Graham spent his time studying in his room to distract him from everything that’s going on. Kade was slumped down on the couch watching tv and would often snap when Vigil’s voice was heard on the television broadcast. Chief Burns was cooking dinner when he received a call, not bothering to check the ID he answered anyway and nearly burned his hand when hearing who exactly was on the phone. 

_ /Chief Burns. I demand to know why no one is responding to my calls and messages/  _

“Oh Hey, aunt Gertrude how nice of you to call,” Charlie said when he noticed one of Vigil’s drones watching him 

_ /Who in Primus’s name is Gertrude? It’s me Quickshadow/  _

“Visit? Oh no that’s not a really good idea. At the moment everyone here at the Firehouse is a bit busy” he informed making Quickshadow frown at his behavior 

_ /Chief Burns is everything alright over there? Why can’t I come back?/  _

“It’s just some technical issues that just need fixing, don't stress yourself over it, Why don’t you try visiting the city. I’ll have the issue sorted out in a few days and I’ll come by and get you” Charlie said with a strained smile 

_ /I can’t do that Chief, Currently, I am being followed. I need a Groundbridge now/  _

Charlie tensed and he turned off the stove to walk to his room, when seeing the drone fly off he relaxed and made a beeline to his room. With a smirk, he walked towards his closet and was glad that the secret entrances to the bunker would come in handy. Hearing Quickshadow asking if he was still on the line he grunted as he pulled the wall back and closed it again. Panting he answered the phone again, “I’m still here, just needed to grab some batteries for the radio” 

With the coded message Quickshadow finally understood, _/You’re being watched, quickly give the radio to Optimus, he will know how to make the frequency more private. Quickshadow out/_

Chief Burns put his phone back in his pocket and began to run down the tunnel hoping that he wasn’t too late when the bots got a hold of Quickshadow. It didn’t take long to reach a metal door and with some grunt work, he pulled the door open. The bots all looked at Chief Burns in surprise before he quickly told them of the situation. Carefully grabbing the radio from him, Optimus made his way towards the computer console with Ratchet following and began to hail Quickshadow’s frequency. 

_ /Optimus! I need a groundbridge, I’m currently being followed. At the moment I can’t say who but my bet is the Decepticons/  _

“Do not fear Quickshadow, Ratchet will bring you back to base” Optimus reassured, moving away to let Ratchet work 

Ratchet typed in a few command keys and opened the groundbridge for Quickshadow, it took several seconds for ratchet to get the all-clear and immediately closed the portal before anything else got through. Walking downstairs to the main room, Ratchet was quick to scan the other bot for any injuries. 

“What has happened during your mission?” Optimus asked as Quickshadow scowled 

“I was somehow compromised, one minute I’m watching for Decepticon activity then the moment I leave I’m being followed. I managed to get a quick picture of my pursuers” Taking out a holosphere from her subspace, Quickshadow pressed a button and the identity of her pursuers were revealed

Optimus frowned when seeing the vehicles weren’t of cybertronian, Chief Burns was quick to recognize the logo and sighed. “Madeline Pynch. I was wondering why she was so quiet” 

“I presume she is wanted for crimes” 

“Not exactly Optimus, she manages to escape every time we get close to her then somehow the evidence goes missing” 

“She sounds like M.E.C.H” Arcee said while crossing her arms 

“Optimus we can’t have another Silas running around for cybertronian parts,” Ratchet said in worry 

Looking over at the injured, he sighed as walked towards the bunker’s elevator. Ignoring the confused looks he pressed the button and lifted the firehouse garage. Everyone watched him leave the bunker as Vigil’s drones watched him leave the firehouse and began their pursuit. The truck drove towards Doc Greene’s lab and from there Vigil awaited his arrival while Ratchet hoped his friend knew what he was doing. Upon his arrival, Optimus transformed into his bipede mode and walked inside the lab, he made no effort to fight the warrior's Vigil had created. They took him to where Vigil resided but the surprise that awaited certainly shocked him. 

“I am not familiar with you. State your business” Vigil said before noticing the surprised look on the Prime’s face “You must be wondering about my new appearance, I placed my consciousness into a new body with a few altercations of course. Now I have free reign to move around as I please” 

Snapping out of his stupor, Optimus replied, “I am Optimus Prime, I came here to speak with you” 

Vigil gave a suspicious look, “Speak of what?” 

“There is a threat on this island, but be aware the actions of all humans do not fall under the actions of one” 

Intrigued the former computer motioned for Optimus to continue, “I am listening” 

“A human going by the designation Madeline Pynch is hunting down our kind, we do not know of what purpose she has in mind for us but I have dealt with humans like this one before and it is not pleasant” Optimus informed causing Vigil to frown 

“She poses a threat to Chase? And that of the threat you have faced in the past?” 

“the human agency known as M.E.C.H is a secret agency opposing this state's government. I have encountered them many times and each time they come up with weapons meant to harm us. I would not be speaking of this with you if it were false” Optimus replied 

Vigil frowned as he searched his database for any human agencies known as M.E.C.H before finding a government article. His findings eased his worry before facing the Prime again, “It would appear that this agency has been destroyed. So far there are no accounted survivors”

Optimus had a feeling Megatron had something to do with Silas’s demise, “It is still best to proceed with caution. It is likely M.E.C.H will rise again”

“If this M.E.C.H manages to find their way here than I’ll simply destroy them” 

Optimus had no words to oppose Vigil before changing the subject, “Now that I have informed you of the threat coming, How is the well-being of my comrade?” 

“Chase is under perfect care, He is safe with me,” Vigil said not caring for the subject change 

“May I see him? it would help ease the worry from his friends and of myself” 

“Very well” With a motion of his servo, one of his drones left to gather Chase while he watched Optimus with a stern look. 

Blue plating is what caught their attention, Optimus was surprised that Vigil managed to care for him so well for being a simple computer program. Chase was surprised to see Optimus and was going to take a step toward him before feeling Vigil pull him to his side. Shivering from the contact, Chase gave a pleading look towards his leader as he felt the Vigil grip his waist tighter. 

“As I said he is perfectly fine. Now the other matter, I shall have my drones patrol for any signs of Madeline Pynch. If she is seen she will be apprehended” 

Optimus narrowed his optics but nodded at Chase’s well-being, he already scanned the rescue bot and sent it to Ratchet for examination. With a few reassuring pulses from the matrix, Chase slightly relaxed while Vigil still watched his every move. “I will be taking my leave, but this is not the last you will see of me Vigil” 

Vigil had to fight the urge to attack the other when feeling Chase tense in his hold when hearing his battle systems come to life. The rescue bot watched Optimus leave and hoped it would be soon that he and the others would come to save him. Hearing his captor speak snapped him out of his thoughts as he was let out of his hold. 

“Take him back to his chambers. I have much work to do” Chase didn’t argue when two drones came to his side and led him back to his prison while sparring Vigil one last as he left the room. Vigil noticed and smiled before frowning at the sudden feeling, placing a servo over his chest he muttered a curse and typed a few things into his database before setting off to work. 


	10. Home Sweet Home

The fresh smell of saltwater was potent as a certain group neared the ocean, Boulder had a smile on his face when he recognized the city. “We’re almost there!” 

Bulkhead smiled at his brother’s excitement before looking around for a certain sea captain, he quickly panicked when seeing humans looking up and pointing at them. “They can see us” he whispered as Magnus looked down and cursed 

“Scrap” 

“What do we do?” Boulder asked as he saw a small crowd below them 

Predaking grunted and flew higher with his kin making them hold on tightly, it wasn’t until they heard they’re comms finally activate. Hearing a certain medic shouting curses at them through the call while hearing Darksteel snickered. “We are fine Ratchet, our comms were deactivated for a while but we are close to the island with new allies” 

_ /Wait in the old flight compound, I’ll be there to check you over and see if our new allies are being tracked/  _

“Of course Ratchet. What has transpired during the time we were gone?” Magnus asked as Ratchet hesitated to tell him 

_ /It’s a long story. Optimus will inform you all once on the island/  _

Magnus was confused by the answer given to him but didn’t push further as he disconnected the call. “Ratchet will report to us in the old flight compound” 

“Oh I know where that is” Boulder chirped 

“Lead the way little brother,” Bulkhead said as he nervously looked at the humans below them “You think Raph will take this off the human internet” 

“I’m sure Prime has him working on it” Magnus reassured 

Bulkhead didn’t look convinced as he listened to Boulder direct them to the flight compound while he spoke of Griffin Rock. Predaking smiled as he listened to the young rescue-bot speak of his home so fondly while Bulkhead scowled at the predacon’s sudden interest in brother. His scowl was wiped off his face when he and Ultra Magnus tensed when they dived down to land. Boulder whooped in joy at the sudden speed while his brother screamed his aft off while Magnus held on tightly. Once on the ground Bulkhead and Magnus were the first to get off as they quickly grabbed Boulder gently off Darksteel’s back. And made a beeline to the warehouse, the predacons transformed into their bipede mode and stretched their limbs from the long flight. 

“I never want to do that again,” Skylynx said as he groaned when hearing a satisfying pop come from his back cables

“You didn’t have to carry much” Predaking retorted as Magnus and Bulkhead scowled at the insult 

Boulder was the one to speak up with a smile, “You guys are going to love Griffin Rock. There’s so much to see and do on the island” 

Predaking hummed, “This Griffin Rock sounds interesting” 

Seeing the two stare at each other for too long, Bulkhead was quick to block predaking’s view of his brother, “First we need to wait for Ratchet to give us the all-clear. He should be here soon” Hearing a portal open behind him Bulkhead turned to see a familiar medic and sword-wielding wrecker, “It is good to see you two” 

Wheeljack ignored him as he flared at the large Predacon a few feet away from them, “It transforms now?” 

Predaking growled, “Watch your words mech” 

“ENOUGH!” Ratchet yelled as he turned to Wheeljack “You behave before I wield your aft to the ceiling and you” he turned to Predaking “Shut your intake or I’ll wield it shut” 

“Sorry Doc” Wheeljack apologized as he gave another glare at the predacon

Predaking stood there surprised as Ratchet scowled at him and grumbled as he scanned him and his comrades before turning to Boulder and noticed the patch job. “Impressive,” he said with a raised brow as Darksteel preened at the praise. Noticing Ratchet turned to him, “Did you do this? I have to say I’m quite impressed” 

Suddenly shy, Darksteel nodded as Boulder smiled, “He took care of me during our trip back here” 

Ratchet glanced over at Darksteel and gave an amused snort seeing the young predacon all flustered, “With more knowledge he can be a medic in no time. We’ll talk more when we go back” 

Surprised, Darksteel nodded eagerly, making the older medic smile as he turned back to Boulder, “I’ll have to do more repairs on you back on the island” he said before looking at everyone else “Now on to basic maintenance exams” 

Bulkhead took a step back while Ultra Magnus looked uneasy at the look Ratchet gave them. The predacons looked at each other before looking at Ratchet, Darksteel was more interested in what the exam consisted of. While Predaking was tense while Skylynx was easily distracted by what Ratchet now held in his servos.

“Who’s first?” 

Ultra Magnus grumbled as he stepped forward as Ratchet scanned him with the tool he held, the younger predacons didn’t know what the deal was as all Ratchet did was scan the autobot. They both had different reactions to the next part, Darksteel was fascinated while Skylynx scrambled to hide behind Predaking. Wheeljack choked on a laugh and ignored the warning growl both Skylynx and Predaking gave to him. 

“Oh stop being a bunch of sparklings, protoform examination is mandatory. Be lucky this isn’t a more intimate exam” Ratchet said as he continued with what he was doing 

Two responses were received at his response, “Like What!” "There's More!” 

Ratchet cackled and finished with Ultra Magnus to turn to Bulkhead, who in turn groaned but complied anyway unless he wanted a wrench to his helm. Darksteel watched Ratchet work and the medic was all too happy to answer his questions in specific detail. Then it was Predaking’s turn, Darksteel let him work in peace while listening to the medic mumble and type things down on a datapad. Darksteel and Skylynx had their examinations done at the same time while Ratchet continued his analysis. 

“So doc what’s the verdict?” Wheeljack said making the medic jump before glaring at him 

“From what I can tell, Predaking is perfectly fine, the younger ones need more minerals in their systems. I have some supplements they’ll need to be taking for a quartex until their systems are fully developed” he informed “Now for tracking spark signals, we’re lucky that Knockout hasn’t managed to scan your sparks into the Decepticon database. From what I can tell, your sparks should have some leftover pigments from scanners if it was scanned and it has none of that” 

“So we're safe to go back to the island?” Wheeljack said before pausing “Well somewhat safe” 

Predaking narrowed his optics, “What does he mean by that?” 

Ratchet sighed but commed Optimus to prepare a groundbridge, “Optimus will explain once we get back to base” he said as a groundbridge opened a few feet behind him

With a grunt, Predaking turned to his brethren and motioned for them to enter the groundbridge with Ratchet. They hesitated but listened as Ratchet led them through the portal as Wheeljack followed after with Ultra Magnus. Bulkhead already had Boulder in his arms as all three entered last and when coming out the portal they were met with blasters drawn toward the younger predacons with Ratchet shielding them. 

_/VIGIL THEY ARE NO THREAT!/_ A familiar voice rang through the comms as the sounds of a struggle were heard over the intercom

_/I will be the judge of that/_ Vigil said coldly 

“What perfect timing” Bulkhead muttered 


	11. Confronting Vigil

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Holidays! Sorry for the long wait but here is the next chapter!   
> Don't forget to leave a comment and a kudos! Enjoy!

“What perfect timing” Bulkhead muttered 

_/Identify yourselves/_ Vigil ordered while Chase’s yells were heard in the background 

Ultra Magnus looked at his commanding officer and received nothing reassuring when Optimus merely shook his head and motioned for him to answer. Swallowing his pride he looked at the ceiling to answer Vigil, “I am Ultra Magnus, my comrades and I come in peace”

_ /Your statement of peace is not convincing, all of you will report to the lab for further interrogation/  _

With that Vigil disconnected the call as everybot in the bunker was tense and the Predacons looked ready to engage in a fight. Optimus sighed, feeling tired all of a sudden; Ratchet was quick to help him to sit down and scan him for any internal damage. With a scowl, he faced Optimus to reprimand him for bursting a few fuel lines but shut his intake when seeing the exhausted look in his optics. 

“What happened while we were gone?” Bulkhead asked as he set his brother on a medical slab then turned to face everyone 

“Vigil managed to gain a conscience” Arcee informed bitterly while leaning against the wall 

“Who’s Vigil?” Skylynx asked 

Smokescreen answered the Predacon, “Vigil was an AI that the humans created to help with the island’s security” 

“And I presume that Vigil managed to become too intelligent,” Magnus said making Ratchet scoff 

“That and he managed to become infatuated with Chase and now has him captive in Dr.Greene’s lab” 

“I didn’t think it was possible that earth technology can develop thoughts and feelings,” Darksteel said 

“Or develop a tactical processor,” a hoarse voice said 

Everyone turned to face the bot and Smokescreen was quick to help the rescue-bot off his pedes, “Blurr you shouldn’t be standing” 

“I’m fine, just need the room to stop spinning” 

“Another reason why you should be resting lad” High Tide said while walking away from the makeshift medbay in the far corner of the bunker

Boulder watched in horror as his friends were either in stasis or suffering from wounds, “What happened to my friends?” 

“Vigil happened, We didn’t know he had weaponized some of Doc’s tech” Blurr informed, wincing when he was set back down on the medical slab

“The drones came from Dr.Morocco when he was last seen here on Griffin Rock, I suspected they were weaponized,” Chief Burns said as he looked over at the rest of the rescue-bot team with a frown “I didn’t think Vigil figured out how to activate those codes” 

“The technology that the lab possesses is a threat to us Chief Burns, If another Artificial Intelligence is created by the humans and manages to do the things Vigil has done than we cybertronians are no longer safe on Earth” Optimus stated making the room go silent 

“Optimus we can’t just leave! The humans will be defenseless against the Decepticons!” Arcee yelled angrily 

Bumblebee looked over at Blades still form and with a depressed sigh he spoke, **_::He is right Arcee, look at what Vigil did, who knows what he is capable of::_**

“Bumblebee you can’t be serious! What about Miko! Jack! And Raphael!” 

**_::I know, they are our friends but we can’t risk their safety if anyone figured out about us::_** Bumblebee argued as he pointed at the injured and traumatized Rescue-bots 

Arcee stopped her rant as she looked at the rescue-bot team, she sighed before begrudgingly agreeing to Optimus’s words. Ratchet was the one who reassured them, “It is only a suggestion, we haven’t reached that point yet” 

Chief Burns remained silent but he had to agree with Optimus, he couldn’t risk his family being in harm's way. “Let’s keep this between us we don’t need the others to know” 

Optimus nodded but his grim expression still remained as he looked over at Arcee who still remained against the idea. “Vigil will be expecting us but we can’t risk being seen by the rest of the humans” 

“I don’t think Vigil would like meeting anywhere else O.P” High Tide chimed in, “His security protocols won’t allow him to and him getting near the young ones is out of the question” 

Ratchet agreed and said, “He’s right. They went through too much to face vigil, that overgrown computer responded with violence like how a decepticon would when meeting an autobot” 

Optimus nodded in agreement, from what Bumblebee reported, Vigil responded with violence when they first went to speak with him. “I will take volunteers to meet Vigil at the Lab” 

“ABSOLUTELY NOT!” Ratchet roared making Optimus look at him in shock “You are no condition to be up and walking about! Let alone be in combat” he said while poking the prime’s chest 

Everyone watched Ratchet reprimand the Prime and stood awkwardly knowing Optimus wasn’t going to do anything but stand there and listen to his medic list the number of injuries his frame has endured. Ultra Magnus was going to interfere but thought better of it when remembering that Ratchet had very good aim when throwing a wrench. Chief Burns excused himself and he left the bunker while the yelling continued. Predaking and his brethren watched, slack-jawed that the medic was yelling at his commander in front of everyone and not be beaten for it. 

“Ratchet, I understand your concern and I know your word overrules mine when it comes to my health. This is why Ultra Magnus will be going in my place until I recover fully” 

“This won’t end well” Wheeljack muttered before hissing in pain when Bulkhead elbowed his side “What?” 

Bulkhead sighed but let it slide while Darksteel was examining the Prime from afar and could see subtle signs that the Prime was exhausted and in pain. Feeling shy for intruding while they talked he stayed silent while biting his glossa to keep himself from talking. Predaking watched from the corner of his optics and used his wing to nudge his young charge into speaking his mind. Darksteel looked at him then wearily at Ratchet and Optimus who continued to speak to one another before mustering up his courage

“You should go lay down” The conversation stopped as two sets of blue optics stared at the young predacon, while Darksteel twitched under their gaze. “Uh... your frame is giving off subtle signs that you are exhausted and in extreme pain and standing is already becoming a difficult thing to do...um” pausing he turned blue as he became flustered and looked at his leader for some reassurance while panicking from the gazes he received 

Ratchet turned to look at his friend and frowned when seeing his frame shaking slightly, unnoticed if someone else wasn’t looking for it. “Why didn’t you say anything Optimus?” 

The Prime didn’t say a word before his legs buckled, Ratchet and High Tide were quick to catch and safely place him on a medical berth. “Get some rest O.P, we’ll report to ya when we come back” 

Optimus didn’t get a chance to say anything before closing his optics and getting the rest he dearly needed. Ratchet tended to him while Predaking nudged Darksteel to take a few steps toward the medic to observe him work. The young predacon slowly made his way to the makeshift medbay and watched Ratchet work and occasionally asked questions that Ratchet happily answered. All the while everyone else was getting ready to leave, Arcee, Wheeljack, Smokescreen, and Bumblebee were ordered to stay at the bunker with Ratchet. Ultra Magnus was representing Team Prime, High Tide for the Rescuebots, and Predaking for the Predacons. Bulkhead volunteered to go with them for support in case Vigil did something drastic. 

“If he threatens me he threatens my brethren, I won’t allow that” Predaking growled as High Tide shared the sentiment.

“I share the thought” 

“So do I” a new and familiar voice spoke out as Predaking growled instinctively before calming himself 

“Quickshadow” High Tide began but was stopped short by the spy 

“Don’t think you’re going without me, I’m a senior Rescuebot such as yourself and I have every right to go with you mechs” 

High Tide argued, “But you haven’t been part of the Rescuebots since the war began!” 

“I was undercover! I wasn't involved in the war front!” she yelled back as the two continued to bicker

“ENOUGH!” Predaking roared, scaring the rescuebots to finally looking anywhere else besides their injured friends 

“Who’s that?” Salvage whispered to Heatwave who shrugged as he listened to Blades soft intakes of air 

Smokescreen stood in front of Blurr while everyone watched Predaking wearily, “She shall come with us, she is part of your pack. There is no doubt to where he loyalties lie” he growled out 

“Thank you, now let’s get a move on. I don’t want to be dragged by one of the drone’s Vigil has waiting for us outside” Quickshadow informed 

Now standing on the elevator platform, the rest of the bots wished them luck as they made the trip to Doc Greene’s lab. Walking out of the firehouse, they tensed when seeing six armed drones waiting for them; just as Quickshadow said they would. They surrounded the bots once they began walking, transforming was out of the question since the drones were prone to be trigger happy according to Qucikshadow. 

“Let’s get this over with” Bulkhead muttered while eyeing the drone walking beside him 

_/I suggest communicating through comms/_ Quickshadow said as she stood close to High Tide _/These drones look programmed to kill/_

_/The lass is right, look at how they hold their guns/_ High Tide added as he kept his EM field tightly close to himself

_/Human technology is becoming far too advanced on this island/_ Predaking murmured nearly growling when one of the drones brushed his wing with their weapon 

Ultra Magnus kept from drawing his blade and said, _/If this escalates, we end this...permanently/_

_ /Affirmative/ _


	12. Vigil's Departure

The lab was eerily quiet, the halls were dark as drones surrounded the compound. Chase managed the console while keeping a wary optic on Vigil who remained as quiet as a glitchmouse. The mech was currently watching over the security tapes and judging by his uncontrolled EM field, Optimus and the others were almost at the lab. The rescue bot hoped that they were here to rescue him, if his sire were here he knew that Vigil would be offline before the computer had a chance to react. Hearing Vigil suddenly speak startled Chase out of his thoughts as the computer staring at the screen before him. 

“Your comrades will be arriving soon. Come it’s best we meet them outside” 

Chase nodded, his tense form following behind Vigil as they were escorted by two large battle drones; Outside the lab, they saw Ultra Magnus and the others along with new mechs Chase had never seen before in his entire function. Stopping a few feet away from them Magnus was the first to speak once looking over Chase’s wellbeing. “I see he has been treated well” 

Vigil narrowed his optics, “Who are you? I thought Optimus Prime would be attending?”

“Optimus Prime at the moment is still recuperating from injuries over a different matter. Under medical advice, he remained at the base to rest”

Vigil remained silent until Ultra Magnus looked over at Chase with worry lacing his features, “I wouldn’t harm him” 

“Though he may look perfectly fine, I can’t trust your word” Ultra Magnus responded

“Like I told your leader before, Chase is perfectly safe with me” Vigil said sternly as he pulled the young rescuebot close to him and held his waist tightly. 

Feeling the anger in his EM field, Chase tensed, adding with being in close contact with Vigil made his tanks churn. Magnus narrowed his optics when seeing Chase turn his helm away from Vigil, before he could respond High Tide cleared his vocalizer catching his attention. Turning his helm slightly to face the older Rescuebot, seeing the nervous look on his face made him bite back on a response to give Vigil. Predaking watched and suppressed a growl from escaping his throat as watched the young mech tremble in fear. Quickshadow scanned her surroundings and with a scowl, she whispered her findings to Ultra and the commander gave Vigil a look of fury.

“I thought we agreed that this would be a peaceful matter Vigil” 

“Taking precaution is never a bad thing when it comes to the unknown danger coming to the island” Arcee nearly drew her blade but Bulkhead was quick to intervene when seeing the drones ready their guns. Naturally, Vigil didn’t ignore the small details and clearly saw Arcee as a threat, he scanned over the others and frowned at the predacons. “But your new...comrades. They are different from you all” 

Predaking growled as one of Vigil’s came forward, “That is far enough unless you want to be met with the might of a Predacon” 

Raising his servo, Vigil ordered the drone to stop. “Predacon? Nothing in my database shows any knowledge of such species” 

“It wouldn’t show on the human database. Humans are incapable to be close to our knowledge and technology” Qickshadow said causing everyone to tense up as it was clear Vigil took great interest in the sudden new information

“Aren’t you all created by human technology?” Quickshadow realized her mistake as Vigil looked at them with newfound interest, “Now thinking about it, it is quite foolish to believe that humans can create robotic beings of high intelligence” 

“Vigil-” Ultra Magnus began before hearing weapons being drawn 

“I know my origins are from human technology but I’ve far surpassed their expectations of security and protocol” 

Sensing the rising tension from the others, Chase mustered up the courage to intervene, “Vigil don’t do anything rash” 

Hearing the smaller bot speak, Vigil looked at him and the strange feelings from before spread through his entire frame. “Your friends will not be harmed. But answers are appreciated” 

“And I’ll be glad to answer them just...just keep things on a peaceful matter” Chase stuttered as he begrudgingly leaned against the other 

Vigil said nothing but held Chase close to him not seeing the sickened look on Chase’s face, “Very well, Drones desist” 

Ultra Magnus didn’t like the initiative that Chase took but logically it was the right call to keep things peaceful until Vigil makes a wrong move. Feeling the fear radiate off the young rescuebot, Predaking snarled and was about to move forward if it wasn’t for Bulkhead holding him back. /What are you doing!/ 

_ /Fighting won’t make Vigil give us Chase, It’s obvious that Vigil won’t hesitate to harm any of us, and Chase/  _

_ /This Autobot code of yours is probably what keeps the war going, face facts Autobot. Vigil is never going to give back your comrade. He will keep us trapped here if we don’t end this/  _ Predaking retorted as he shook Bulkhead's servo off his shoulder

Bulkhead didn’t say anything but a grim expression showed in his features as he turned to Ultra Magnus with a small nod. “Vigil keeping everyone under lockdown isn’t what is best for us. Having the inhabitants of this island living in fear is not peaceful living” 

This time Vigil took great offense to that and pushed Chase to one of his drones who easily kept a tight grip on Chase’s shoulders. “Let go of me!” he yelled as he struggled to get free

Glaring at the Autobots, Vigil motioned for his drones to surround them, “I am capable of providing security for this island, and it seems to me you all have proven to be a liability to this island’s safety” 

Wheeljack took out his swords while everyone transformed their servos into blasters, aiming at the enemy now surrounding them. “Take Chase to a more secure location” Vigil ordered 

“NO!” Chase struggled against the drone holding him as he was being pulled away, “LET GO OF ME!” 

“Drones, Attack” 

“Just when I thought things couldn’t get any worse” High Tide muttered as he and Quickshadow took cover while their comrades fought against the drones

Smokescreen dodged blaster fire coming his way as Arcee fought one head-on with Ultra Magnus. Bumblebee used his blades to slice off a drone's helm clean off before fighting against his next opponent. Wheeljack laughed in excitement as he sliced a few drones in half while Bulkhead used his mace to pummel the drones before shooting them. “I haven’t had this much excitement in diuns!” 

“Now is not the time Wheeljack!” Arcce snapped as she sliced a drones servo clean off

Ultra Magnus grunted as he was thrown to the ground and was met with the head of a pistol, closing his optics he heard steel being crushed and looked up to see Predaking in his beast form. “Nice timing”

With a huff Predaking roared as his brethren fought alongside the autobots; Drones kept coming out of the lab and it was clear they were outnumbered no matter how many drones they managed to offline. “They just keep coming!” Smokescreen yelled as he rolled out the way of being stomped on

Bumblebee was back to back with Bulkhead as they watched the drones surround them : **:Some help would be nice!::** with a yelp he pulled Bulkhead to the ground as fire shot past them, melting the drones around them. Looking up he was met with bright yellow optics, **::That’s one way to slag the pit out of those drones::**

Skylyn warbled at the praise before ducking his helm when a stray shot flew past his helm, roaring at the near hit he looked at Smokescreen who smiled sheepishly before yelping when a drone nearly made a grab for him. While everyone was busy fighting Vigil’s forces, said bot watched from afar before turning and watched Chase struggle to get free while screaming in a language he has never heard of before. 

“This island is far too dangerous to remain, we will be going” 

Chase ceased his struggles for a moment before continuing frantically as the Drone holding him gripped him tightly causing him to let out a pained whimper. Vigil scowled and without a word, he activated the drone's self-destruct codes; Chase yelled in fear when the drone’s helm exploded behind him. Everything began to spin as the police bot fell into stasis with Vigil catching him in his arms; looking back at the battle the once computer programs activated a few codes as a blue portal appeared behind him. High Tide and Quickshadow went after him but we met with three of Vigil’s drones blocking their way. 

“CHASE!” 

Walking through the portal with Chase in his arms, Vigil left Griffin Rock not without activating the self-destruct coding the drones had. Everyone stood there in horror as the realization finally sunk in from what transpired. High Tide stood in shock before falling to his knees and yelling out into the sky not caring if the citizens of Griffin Rock could hear his pain. Citizens cautiously walked out of their homes when seeing the Drones suddenly go up in flames. Everyone flinched when hearing pained cries coming from the laboratory; the Burns family ran out of the firehouse when hearing High Tide’s cries and the sudden feeling of dread washed over them. With Team Prime’s human charges they were also swept with sudden dread as High Tide’s cries grew louder. No one on Griffin Rock said a word as they listened to the unknown cries, grief spread through everyone as they hugged their friends and family. Down in the bunker, everyone jumped when Blades suddenly awoke with a gasp and clutched his chest as Heatwave was quick to steady him while Ratchet scanned his spark pulses. 

Frowning the medic looked over at the young rescuebot, “Blades do you have an amica endura?” 

Taking shaky breaths the rescuebot nodded, “The bond…” he choked on a sob “It broke” 

Boulder broke down crying as Heatwave looked away to hide his tears while listening to his team mourn over their friend. Prime listened as his people cried for one of their own, looking at his old friend he saw tears stain his face while remaining professional when treating Blades. Turning his helm he watched Blurr seek comfort from Salvage as quiet sobs emitted from the racer while the larger rescuebot rubbed his back and held him closer, careful of his wounds. With the rest of the team they used the tunnels to make their way back to the bunker, no one said a word even when arriving at their base. High Tide and Quickshadow were quick to go near their younger charges making sure that each and every one of them was alright while trying to keep a brave face. 

Ultra Magnus was reporting the incident to Optimus via comms while Ratchet treated them for any injuries. Everyone remained silent as they could hear the humans come down to the bunker; not a word was said to them as the rescue bots respected partners stood beside them. Chief Burns looked amongst them and with a pang in his chest, his eyes widened when realizing who they were grieving for. Predaking remained quiet while his brethren looked ashamed for not getting Chase to safety; hearing Boulder cry made the older predacon’s spark clench as seeing the younger showing such pain did not bode well with him. No one knew when the human charges of Team Prime arrived nor did they care at the moment, Optimus struggled to sit up but managed on his own while every one of his people looked at him for direction. 

“From what transpired at the labs, Ultra Magnus has informed me that Chase is still alive. According to Ratchet, Chase was Blades amica endura. Whatever groundbridge Vigil has managed to create must of done something to their spark signatures for the bond between Chase and Blades to suddenly break” 

“So he’s okay, we can get him back and-” Miko began before looking at everyone and wiped away her tears angrily 

Ratchet sighed, “No one is physically fit to go and search for Vigil, the predacons are still being hunted by the decepticons and the people of Griffin Rock are no doubt wondering what happened to the drones” 

**::There is also the fact that Vigil could have gone anywhere he wanted on Earth::** Bumblebee added as he looked over at Blades who cried his spark out 

“Though that may be true, Vigil wouldn’t go to a place that would bring Chase harm. When we are fit and ready we will find and bring Chase home” 

“And what about Vigil, Optimus?” asked Arcee

“Shoot on sight” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So we are close to an end! I hope everyone has enjoyed this story as much as I did! The next part of this series is going to be a rollercoaster of surprises.


	13. Aboard The Nemesis

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the chapter was supposed to be posted on the weekend but I forgot. But here it is. I hope you enjoy

The wilderness of the jungles of India was humid but safe for the moment as Vigil kept watch while Chase remained in stasis. Hearing the sound of wildlife put Vigil on edge as he recalled the events of the day prior, to say he could’ve done something different but the newcomers and the island’s safety has put him on his limits. Looking over at the bot he comes to grow fascinated with; seeing the bruises now forming on his arms caused a scowl to appear as he turned back to watch the dark jungle before him. He made his territory known and none of the animals drew close to him or Chase but watched afar before leaving. It wasn’t long when his sensors picked up unusual activity not too far from them, looking back at the unconscious bot he looked at his sensors again and found the threat to be moving closer to them.

Standing he grabbed the gun from his waist and when the rustling of bushes was heard he raised his blaster as the threat made itself known. Red optics widened in surprise before smirking when seeing the unconscious rescuebot. “Well this is very interesting” 

Yellow optics narrowed as he kept his digit on the trigger, “State your name and business” 

The other mech cackled as slim digits pressed to his comm channel, “Don’t worry I’m sure Lord Megatron will be delighted to speak with you” 

“Who is this Megatron?” 

“You will see” the mech responded before he got through to the one mech he served, “Lord Megatron/ 

_/What is it Knockout/_ he snapped 

I found the source of the strange spark signal and it seems he has a friend who needs medical attention”

_ /Good, I’m sure they will need energon. I’ll have Soundwave send a groundbridge to your coordinates/  _

“Of course Lord Megatron” Knockout responded before ending the call and turned to look at the rescuebot and the mysterious mech before him “I’m Knockout and you are?” he asked, cocking his hip to one side with a servo resting on it. 

Slowly lowering his weapon, Vigil looked at the other before answering, “I am Vigil and the bot behind me is Chase” 

“Nice to meet you Vigil, Now we have the proper medical equipment to take a look at your friend and yourself back on our ship. That is if you wish to come” 

Vigil hesitated before looking at Chase then at Knockout when finding that staying in the wilderness was illogical. “When shall we leave?” 

A groundbridge opened up behind Knock Out and with a smile, the red Aston Martin motioned behind him. “Right now”

Vigil said nothing and turned to lift Chase into his arms and followed Knockout into the groundbridge as it closed behind them. Knockout was the first to step into the command deck as Vigil followed behind him and was met with many mechs. The former computer narrowed his eyes before looking at the larger mech of them all with a bored stare. 

“Lord Megatron, this is Vigil and the bot in his arms is Chase” Knockout introduced as the silver mech nodded before smiling in a malicious way in Vigil’s opinion

“Welcome to the Nemesis Vigil. I’m sure you and your friend will be most welcome here” 

Vigil doubted that as he noticed a few already having their battle protocols at the ready, “Where is your medical lab” he asked rudely 

Knockout startled as everyone stayed silent as they awaited Megatron’s reaction but were surprised when said bot began to laugh. “Knockout show our guests to the medical bay, Tomorrow we would have more time to better acquaint ourselves with Vigil” 

Knockout nodded before motioning for Vigil to follow him out the command deck which Vigil gladly did not bother to hide his mistrust of the Decepticon Lord. When they left, the charming smile Megatron graced was replaced with a snarl as he turned to his third in command. “Soundwave, keep an optic on Vigil. I do not trust him enough to expect any treachery, unlike Starscream. Who I can see his treachery in a click” 

Soundwave said nothing but when Megatron turned, a thumbs down emoji showed on his visor making a few drones hold in their snickers. Megatron turned to face them with a glare, the drones were quick to get back to work as the warlord left the room. Soundwave monitored until he was far enough before waving a servo at his crew; the command deck erupted in laughter as few drones were on their knees and holding their midsections from the pain of laughing too hard. Meanwhile, Knockout received the video of the stunt Soundwave pulled on Megatron and couldn’t help but snicker. Vigil ignored the medic and kept his optics on Chase, his chest was free of the rescuebot symbol which was logical on his part. He allowed the medic to analyze any injuries Chase had and the medic hummed catching attention. 

“Breakdown can you-” Knockout began before immediately holding his glossa and blinked back tears, clearing his throat he gave Vigil a charming smile, “Now your friend here is perfectly healthy but the bruises on his forearms will probably leave him sore so make sure he doesn’t move too much and-” 

“Who is Breakdown?” Vigil asked causing Knockout to stutter as he gripped the medical datapad in his servos tightly before answering 

“No one" he responded quickly with anger in his tone before sighng "let's get you two settled in your quarters” 

Vigil frowned but said nothing when analyzing Knockout’s tense form and the liquid forming on his optics was another sign that Vigil hit a sore spot. Lifting Chase off the medical slab, he followed Knockout and it took a while to find a room that situated two bots but they managed. “Now it isn’t big but it does fit the both of you. Now remember make sure he doesn’t move his arms often and when they begin to fade bring him back to me so I can check his motor movements” 

“Of course” 

“Not much for words aren't you? Well enjoy your lunar cycle” Knockout said before leaving back to his quarters with the door shutting behind him 

Vigil went into the berthroom and laid Chase down on the berth before leaving to monitor his surroundings. His own networks and sensors detected many threats on this ship, making the security bot clutch his helm in agony as multiple alerts showed on his HUD. Taking deep intakes of air he created new codes and deleted what he thought useless before his systems did a quick reboot. Standing tall once more he went back to explore the room, giving the corner of the ceiling a look before waving and went back to minding his business. Soundwave watched and was a bit startled that Vigil managed to find the hidden camera, he clenched his servos as he typed a few commands to the ship’s systems but all were denied. He commed Megatron immediately and dismissed the drones, It didn’t take long for Megatron to arrive, as having two hab-suites on the ship proved necessary sometimes. 

“What is it Soundwave?” 

_**::Vigil proved to be more intelligent than expected::** _

Megatron quirked his brow at this and it was clear his old friend was irritated, “Explain”

_**::He has managed to deny my overwrite codes of ship’s security::** _

“He doesn’t even have the ship’s systems memorized” he snarled as he clenched his servos into fists

_**::Query, Should comm Starscream back from scout mission::** _

Megatron roared in anger as he turned to Soundwave, “I will not call that treacherous seeker back onto my ship” 

Soundwave looked at him blankly before replaying a recording of him from many millennia ago, _< So long as he believes the destruction of Vos was the Autobots doing, we will have the seeker armada serve the Decepticon cause>_

Red optics widening before narrowing as anger shown on his features, “You dare blackmail me?” 

**_::Brought this upon yourself::_** was all Soundwave said before leaving the command deck and leaving Megatron all alone

The warlord growled out in frustration before coming to the one mech he despised more than Optimus Prime himself. _/What! Don’t you know I’m currently doing recon/_

“Is that any way to speak to your Lord and Master, Starscream?” he growled as the other line remained quiet before answering 

_/I’m sorry my lord, I thought you were someone else/_ Starscream hesitantly said 

Megatron snapped, “Who else would I be!?” 

_ /None of your concern. Now, what is it?/  _

Ignoring his attitude, for now, Megatron began to explain the situation to his second and it didn’t take long for the seeker to put the pieces together. _/Figures the humans would create an artificial intelligence to evolve. I’ll be back on the Nemesis in three solar cycles/_ he sighed 

“THREE! I WANT YOU BACK HERE NOW!” 

_/Lord Megatron, You sent me to the other side of this primus forsaken planet. A groundbridge will have the humans having a lock on my location thus ruining the art of stealth. Three solar cycles. I’m sure you can handle the AI until I return to deal with it myself/_ Starscream retorted with a smug tone 

“Why you blasted seeker I will!-” 

_ /Starscream out/  _

Hearing the comm line cut, the warlord began to scream and mutter curses all the while he was being watched by a certain security bot who kept a neutral face as he knew Soundwave was watching on another console. Putting his arm back to his side he laid back on the berth and noted that it was somewhat comfortable but he was sure it wasn’t for Chase. Hacking the ship’s system was too easy and he managed to find information about the planet Cybertron, its people and culture. Some of it was too corroded to be read but a few touches of his own codes managed to repair what information was left. 

Finding out that Chase was of praxian descent was surprising for apparently most praxians were law enforcers and that was it. Deciding to let Chase explain Praxian culture to him on another date, he listened to the sounds of his systems running, and the calming sounds of him venting. Vigil looked at the ceiling once more and found that his optics began to droop and before he could calculate what was happening, he was already in recharge. 


End file.
